Ping Xu

Assistant Professor

Ping Xu (Ph.D. Louisiana State University, 2012)

Ping Xu joined the Political Science Department at URI in the fall of 2012. Ping also has a part-time appointment in the Women and Gender Studies program. She graduated from Wuhan University in China in 2005, and then obtained a master’s degree with honors from Leiden University in the Netherlands in 2007. In the summer of 2012, she received her Ph.D. from Louisiana State University. Her research interests include political economy, Chinese politics, inequality, immigration, the welfare state, and social movements. Professor Xu’s work has been published in both Chinese and English. Her work has appeared in journals like The China Quarterly, Social Science Quarterly, and in edited books like Oxford Handbook of State and Local Politics and Research Colloquium on Social Management and Policy in the Aftermath of Wenchuan Earthquake.

Professor Xu’s teaching interests include Chinese politics, international women’s issues, Asian politics, comparative political economy, and research methodology. Professor Xu has received numerous awards from National Science Foundation, the University of Michigan, Texas A&M University, and Louisiana State University to conduct research and for methodology training. Professor Xu also has been active in community service. In the aftermath of the 2008 Chinese earthquake, she delivered several policy suggestions to the central Chinese government as part of her work with a major think-tank.